Forgotten Promises

At dinner, Albus could sense an awkwardness about Minerva's behavior and lightly questioned her about it. Unwilling to share the events from earlier in the day, she tried to brush his concerns aside. But, Conall was making it more difficult for her and when he loudly mentioned her fall, Albus was left feeling a bit upset at being left out. If Minerva had fallen, he should have been informed immediately. As it were, he had only learned by accident but he was thankful that she had not been injured. Upon further questioning, Conall was more than happy to explain how it had happened and how he had safely caught Minerva in his arms to break her fall.

Minerva suddenly felt torn. Torn between two men but only one of them had made any indications that he might be interested in her. The other had always held her heart but had made no attempts to claim it. And the way they were speaking about her as if she was not there was the last straw! "Albus, Conall, Please excuse me. I have detention with three young Slytherin offenders and I need to prepare their assignments. I shall see you both later!" And with her robes billowing behind her, she swept silently from the dining hall and down the corridors to the safety of her office, leaving behind two stunned men in her absence.

Days passed and Conall was taking every opportunity to spend time with Minerva. He was eagerly anticipating their outing on Saturday and he continued to engage her in conversations at mealtimes about their common upbringing in the highlands of Scotland or his auror work and how much he loved Hogwarts. With an increase in Albus' workload, Minerva saw less of him than usual and yet she found her free time occupied with a new friend. In fact, she found herself enjoying Conall's company more and more while thinking of Albus less and less.

Hogsmeade Saturday arrived with brilliant sunshine and a warm breeze. But for some reason, Minerva found it hard to get excited about visiting the wizarding village. Her thoughts had turned to Albus' rejection of her offer to accompany her and at the same time, she understood why he had said no. Then she was reminded of Conall's remark about Albus putting work before pleasure, and suddenly she felt hurt. She had given Albus every bit of free time she had and what had he given her in return? Sure, they had a deep friendship but she wanted so much more. And apparently he wasn't interested in giving it to her. Truth of the matter was that she wasn't getting any younger either and she was faced with a man who found her attractive and interesting. Not to mention that he was intelligent and handsome!

Alone in his office, Albus stared out of the massive windows and admired the day. He had felt horrible about having to refuse an invitation from Minerva but surely she would understand that some things just couldn't be helped. He had already planned to make it up to her somehow but he just had to decide on what to do. As he carefully thought of his options, his eyes caught sight of the woman of his dreams laughing as she made her way to a fun afternoon with another. Just then, the Minister of Magic flooed into his office, breaking Albus' concentration.

Minerva and Conall never appeared at dinner that night and Albus found himself lonely. Several times, he started to say something to the woman always seated to his right, only to be reminded of her absence. He had no one to blame but himself and that hurt most of all. If only he had accepted her invitation, but duty called and some things just couldn't wait. Surely she understood and things would return to normal once her fascination with the new professor wore thin. And, he still had their weekly chess games and morning routines to look forward to. No longer hungry, he pushed around the bits of food on his plate until it was time to retire, with still no sight of Minerva or Conall.

Days slowly turned into weeks and Professor MacGregor managed to use any and every excuse he could think of to spend time alone with Minerva. Albus had noticed the lame reasons he used but felt that it was not his place to say anything. After all, he had no justification for feeling as he did. He and Minerva were nothing more than friends, although he had always wanted more. It had been his own fears of rejection that had stopped him from making any progress in the matter.

And now he was forced to sit by and watch another man make great strides to win her heart. More and more often, Albus would venture to Minerva's office just to say hello, only to find the two of them sharing afternoon tea or out walking through the gardens during her break. At meals, they seemed to carry on lengthy and lively discussions, which usually ended in the sounds of her wonderful laughter. But tonight was different and it was the beginning of an unwelcome change.

This particular evening was the one designated for the weekly chess match between Albus and Minerva. No matter what was on their agendas, they always managed to set aside a few hours for the game. It had been years since either of them had needed a reminder so the topic was rarely mentioned. It was just one of those things that becomes set in stone through the years. It had become second nature to them. So, when Albus bid his colleagues a goodnight after dinner, he naturally assumed that Minerva would come to his private quarters as she had done on this day of the week for years.

Minutes turned into quarter hours, which turned into half hours, which turned into multiple hours without end. At first, Albus was worried when she didn't show and then he remembered how he had overreacted a month ago. So, he tried to sit and read while patiently waiting for his chess partner to arrive, glancing frequently at his pocket watch.

After the second hour, he decided to visit her office with the expectation of finding her grading papers or working with a student. But once again his hopes were raised for nothing when he opened the door to an empty room. Still fighting feelings of worry and confusion, he walked the corridors of the school in search of her, hoping for some logical explanation for her sudden forgetfulness. But all he found were empty hallways and darkened corners.

After looking in every conceivable place inside the school for Minerva, he turned his attentions to the grounds outside. It had been a cool evening but that had never stopped the Scottish lassie from enjoying the night air. He had even accompanied her on many walks at night, while admiring the stars above. Had he known how his heart was about to break, Albus might have stayed in the comfort of his own chambers. Had he known the reason why Minerva had not kept their weekly plans, he would never have gone looking for her. But he hadn't known and he had no way of guessing so it was a complete surprise to find Minerva and Conall strolling arm and arm leisurely across the grounds near the lake.

At first his heart was ripped into pieces. She had forgotten their weekly date. The one person who would always rearrange her schedule to spend time with him had managed to push him from her thoughts. And now it appeared that he had been replaced by another. He tried to convince himself that it was an accident but that was almost as painful as seeing how she allowed Professor MacGregor to gently loop her arm through his. He was hurt, angry and had no idea what he should do or what he should say. But he knew that he did not want to upset her or cause her any embarrassment so he stood in the shadows and waited.

Watching them from a distance, the pieces of his heart shattered one by one. He knew how wrong it was to spy on his best friend. And he also knew that she was very capable of making intelligent decisions. But this just looked and felt so wrong! He wasn't quite sure if he was angered at having been forgotten or jealous that someone else had managed to make her forget him. Before he could come to any definite conclusions, he had taken the first step towards them and had captured Minerva's eyes. When she noticed the lack of amusement or happiness on his face, she quickened her steps, so much so that Conall was having trouble keeping up with her.

"Albus! What's the matter? Has something happened?" Her total disregard for their regular plans only hurt him more as she spoke her questions and trying to control his wounded feelings was becoming an increasingly harder task than he had realized.

"I trust that you are well this evening, Minerva." A frowning face was all the response he received. "And seeing you here, I believe I can return to my chambers and rest without worry. Good evening." As he turned to leave, Minerva tried to grab his arm to stop him but he pulled away from her quickly.

"Please Minerva. Continue with your evening. I was merely concerned for your safety and well being. By all means, do not let me interrupt!" All Albus wanted to do was walk slowly back to the castle and spend some quiet time in his rooms thinking things through. But Conall could not resist the urge to throw one more dagger at Albus' wounded heart.

"As you can see, I can assure you that she is in fine form and there is no need for your concern, Headmaster. I will see that she is escorted to her rooms this evening." The two men glared at one another and Minerva knew that somehow…some way she had caused this odd confrontation. Neither of them spoke but Minerva could not help but see the coldness in Albus' eyes and the arrogance oozing from every cell in Conall's body. Taking matters into her own hands, she looked from one to the other before speaking.

"I'm not entirely sure what is going on tonight or what has caused this sudden outburst from you, Albus but I have much more important things to do than stand around on a Thursday night and …" Like a bludger pounding into a player during a quidditch match, she was struck hard with the sudden knowledge of why Albus had been so upset! She also saw his eyes begin to soften as he looked at her, right before he walked away.

He had only taken a handful of steps before Minerva found the courage to go after him. Only when she tried to move, a firm hand latched onto her arm and stopped her. No longer in a jovial mood, she shot Conall the infamous McGonagall look and removed her arm from his grip.

"Conall, you don't understand! It's Thursday! I forgot Albus! I forgot our weekly chess match and I owe him an apology! I am sorry but I must speak with him. I will see you tomorrow." Minerva spanned the remaining distance to Albus swiftly, all the while calling his name as she ran. However, his feelings had been so hurt he had not wanted to speak to her for fear of saying something he would regret. Or worse, for fear of learning that she was falling in love with the man who was so much younger than him.

Still, as she ran alongside him, he decided to stop and listen to what she had to say His eyes were no longer as cold as they had been only seconds earlier but they weren't twinkling either. No, they were filled with an emotion she had never seen before. It didn't frighten her but made her want to cry. After all, there was nothing he could say to her that could make her feel any worse than she already did.

"Albus, please let me explain. I'm sorry…"

"There is no need for an apology Minerva. You are perfectly capable of deciding with whom you spend your free time and I can see how you would enjoy spending time with Professor MacGregor."

"And what is that supposed to mean?" She didn't feel the need to wait for his answer. She was too angry. Before she could rationally process her words, she heard them tumbling from her trembling mouth. "That he's been paying more attention to me lately? Or that he actually makes time in his day for me instead of the other way around? Maybe it's supposed to mean that he finds me interesting and worthy of his precious free time?" Breathing heavily, she threw in one further remark. "Or maybe it's something I haven't mentioned yet like the fact that he's close to my own age and makes me feel appreciated? Well, which is it Albus?" Every part of her body was shaking with anger and frustration. She had not wanted to say those things but she had not fought very hard to stop them from being spoken either.

"As I said earlier, Minerva, I did not mean to interfere with your evening. Good night." And with those softly spoken words, he walked calmly and slowly towards the castle, to the comfort of his rooms. Back to face an unused chessboard, two cups of cold tea, and a beautiful pink rose that had been placed tenderly in her chair hours earlier.

Conall moved closer to Minerva's side and tried to pull her into a comforting embrace but she moved away at his touch. She had said some very hurtful things and there had been no excuse for her reactions. After all, she had been the one to forget. "Conall, if you'll excuse me I really must go. I…"

"Minerva, dearest, he was wrong to assume that you have no life other than the one he assigns for you. I've seen the way you adjust your timetables to accommodate him and yet I have never seen him return the favor. He is merely upset because for the first time, he is not the center of your attention. Please, don't let him spoil our evening or our budding relationship for that matter."

His words had sounded so convincing but her heart knew that they did not ring true. Albus was a very busy wizard in their world and so many sought his advice on political and personal matters. It wasn't as if he had forgotten her. In fact, he had gone searching for her until he was sure she was well. As Minerva sprawled across her bed and stared at the ceiling, all she could still see were the hurt filled eyes of the man she had secretly loved for years. She hadn't meant to skip their game but Albus had shared so very little of his time with her lately and when Conall asked her to accompany him, it never crossed her mind what day it was.

Conall was another matter entirely. At first, she had been drawn to his charming personality but that had faded quickly. She had seen past the handsome features and had started to care very deeply for the man who lavished her with attention. Just this morning he had sent her a note for no reason at all. My dearest…You fill my days with your beauty and the sound of your voice is sweeter than the birds. I cherish the time I am able to spend in your company. ForeverConall

He made her feel so many things. He had recently started surprising her with notes, like the one earlier in the day, flowers for no reason, afternoon teas either in her office or in the gardens. To her, it seemed that he was truly interested in her as a woman and not a colleague or a friend. Several times he had tried to steal a kiss but she had always pushed him away teasingly, not really ready to take that bold move in their friendship. She wanted to be sure of her own feelings towards him before allowing any further advances.

Yet, tonight when he had chastised Albus, she felt unsure of everything and the way he had jumped into the middle of their heated discussion made her doubt her own mind. On the one hand, she knew that she had hurt Albus deeply, even more than she probably realized. Then again, she had done nothing wrong with Conall and it was her decision to accept his offer for an evening stroll. Maybe if Albus had shown more interest in her lately she would have remembered their standing game. Then again, if she hadn't been so interested in exploring a deeper relationship with Conall she might have remembered on her own. With a pounding headache and an aching heart, Minerva drifted off to a restless sleep.

A/N: Thanks for the wonderful compliments! Now to address your comments…

Evilwoman: We really dislike Conall too and he is a tad obsessive. Just wait a few more chapters, then tell us what you think of him! Mwhahahaha (our evil laughs)!

Silvercrystal77: You'll have to wait and see if Minerva falls for Conall. At the moment, he's definitely paying her more attention so Albus had better wake up soon!

Jestana: Now that we've put Conall back together after having him ripped to shreds, hang on to your seat because he's not finished yet.

Happy Reader!: Hope you found that pet lethifold! We're gonna need him before the story is finished.

Minerva's Quill: Oh you're going to be very annoyed with certain events but very pleased with others. But that's all we're saying at the moment!

Catwoman99: That Conall is a sneaky little guy isn't he? But that's not all he has planned for our dear Minerva. Just stick around and I'm sure you'll be surprised.

Stoneygem: Conall's age: We see him as slightly younger than Minerva (maybe by one or two years but they're very close in age). He's nowhere close to Albus' age but close enough to Minerva to fall head over heels for her. Glad you like the story!

Griselda La Fay: We agree! Conall and Trelawney deserve each other and it is Albus' job to catch our dear Minerva! Now, we just have to make sure he's at the right place at the right time! wink wink

Minerva Black: Scottish people do rock! And we hope the update was worth your wait!